Teens win prize money for fresh food idea

Child access to fresh food and health care were among the winning ideas pitched at the 10th annual Teen Entrepreneur Summer Academy (TESA) July 1. The camp was hosted by the Richard M. and Helen DeVos Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CEI) in the Seidman College of Business and sponsored by Amway.

About 40 high school students attended TESA, held June 27-July 1 at the L. Willliam Seidman Center. Students learned the fundamentals of creating a start-up company with Amway employees serving as mentors and coaches.

This year's theme was centered on poverty and lack of access to health care. Students had five minutes to pitch their ideas to a panel of judges.

First place team members won $2,500 for their idea called, Time to Get Fresh, which would utilize school buses to deliver fresh food from area farms to local elementary schools. Team members included Ravel Bowman, George Ebeling, Abigail Johandes, Alicia Mendez and Jennifer Puente.

Second place team members won $1,500 for their idea called, Crane Care, which would give children in poverty access to health care by operating a clinic within a K-5 school building. Team members included Sofia Alfaro, Geneviev Doyle, Benjamin Janes, Miranda Pablo and Jaspreet Singh. 

And, third place team members won $1,000 for their idea called, A New Page, which would provide mental health care to prisoners by students studying to be social workers. Team members included Nicholas Baran, Michaela Gheorghiu, Joey Paliwoda, Alex Plouff and Allison Smart. 

During the week-long camp, students learned strategies for launching a new business, including idea generation, problem solving, marketing techniques, management, financial strategies, presentation skills and more. 

For more information, contact the Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation at [email protected] or (616) 331-7582.